Mediators of the Relation Between Maternal Depressive Symptoms and Child Internalizing and Disruptive Behavior Disorders.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 18(1) of Journal of Family Psychology (see record 2007-16896-001). On page 551, in Table 2, two values are listed incorrectly. In row 17, Early Child Externalizing (K, Grade 2), the correlation coefficients in columns 4 and 5 should be transposed to read -.087 in column 4 (People in My Life Communication) and -.208 in column 5 (Inventory of Parent Experiences Community Support).] Drawing on a normative sample of 224 youth and their biological mothers, this study tested 4 family variables as potential mediators of the relationship between maternal depressive symptoms in early childhood and child psychological outcomes in preadolescence. The mediators examined included mother-child communication, the quality of the mother-child relationship, maternal social support, and stressful life events in the family. The most parsimonious structural equation model suggested that having a more problematic mother-child relationship mediated disruptive behavior-disordered outcomes for youths, whereas less maternal social support mediated the development of internalizing disorders. Gender and race were tested as moderators, but significant model differences did not emerge between boys and girls or between African American and Caucasian youths. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Is Depression Best Viewed as a Continuum or Discrete Category? A Taxometric Analysis of Childhood and Adolescent Depression in a Population-Based Sample.

The authors examined the latent structure of depression in a population-based sample of children and adolescents. Youth's self-reports and parents' reports of the youth's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) major depressive symptoms were assessed via a structured clinical interview. The authors used Meehl's (1995) taxometric procedures to discern whether youth depression is dimensional or categorical. Taxometric analyses that explicitly took into account the skewness of depressive symptoms suggested that depression is a dimensional, not categorical, construct. The dimensional structure of depression was obtained for all of the DSM-IV major depressive symptoms as well as for different domains of depression (emotional distress symptoms and vegetative, involuntary defeat symptoms), youth and parent reports, and different subsamples (i.e., boys vs. girls and younger vs. older youth). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Testosterone and child and adolescent adjustment: The moderating role of parent-child relationships.

In a sample of established middle- and working-class families with normally developing children and adolescents ranging in age from 6 to 18 years, sons' and daughters' testosterone levels showed little direct connection to risk behavior or symptoms of depression. In contrast, testosterone's positive relation with risk behavior and negative relation with depression were conditional on the quality of parent-child relations. As parent-child relationship quality increased, testosterone-related adjustment problems were less evident. When relationship quality decreased, testosterone-linked risk-taking behavior and symptoms of depression were more in evidence. Few relations were found between parents' testosterone and child behavior. Boys' and girls' ages and stages of pubertal development were important for understanding the expression of hormone-related problem behavior in some cases but not in others. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The structure of maladaptive personality traits in childhood: A step toward an integrative developmental perspective for DSM-V.

The present study describes the construction of a taxonomy of trait-related symptoms in childhood, the Dimensional Personality Symptom Item Pool (DIPSI), and examines the replicability of the taxonomy's higher order structure across maternal ratings of referred (N = 205) and nonreferred (N = 242) children and self-ratings of adolescents (N = 453). The DIPSI's 4 higher order factors--that is, Emotional Instability, Disagreeableness, Introversion, and Compulsivity--showed clear correspondence with the dimensions of personality pathology found in adulthood (Dimensional Assessment of Personality Pathology-Basic Questionnaire; W. J. Livesley, 1990; Schedule for Nonadaptive and Adaptive Personality; L. A. Clark, 1993). These 4 factors can be further organized into 2 superfactors, representing Internalizing and Externalizing Traits, demonstrating empirical and conceptual relationships with psychopathology models in childhood and adulthood. The implications for the assessment and conceptualization of early trait pathology are discussed in the context of an integrative developmental perspective on the construction of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fifth Edition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of meprobamate on fear and palmar sweating.

With a ride on a ferris wheel as an anxiety-provoking situation, Ss were given meprobamate (1600 mg.) and placebo in an a-b, b-a administration. Measures of anxiety were obtained, viz., a direct measure of automatic activity (palmar sweat), an indirect measure of autonomic N.S. activity (reports re: upset stomach, increased heart rate, nervousness, hand tremulation, dizziness, cold sweat), and reports of degree of fear experienced. Meprobamate apparently did not lead to a significant reduction in the symptoms of anxiety. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Associations of office workers’ objectively assessed occupational sitting,standing and stepping time with musculoskeletal symptoms

We examined the association of musculoskeletal symptoms (MSS) with workplace sitting, standing and stepping time, as well as sitting and standing time accumulation (i.e. usual bout duration of these activities), measured objectively with the activPAL3 monitor. Using baseline data from the Stand Up Victoria trial (216 office workers, 14 workplaces), cross-sectional associations of occupational activities with self-reported MSS (low-back, upper and lower extremity symptoms in the last three months) were examined using probit regression, correcting for clustering and adjusting for confounders. Sitting bout duration was significantly (p < 0.05) associated, non-linearly, with MSS, such that those in the middle tertile displayed the highest prevalence of upper extremity symptoms. Other associations were non-significant but sometimes involved large differences in symptom prevalence (e.g. 38%) by activity. Though causation is unclear, these non-linear associations suggest that sitting and its alternatives (i.e. standing and stepping) interact with MSS and this should be considered when designing safe work systems.

Practitioner summary: We studied associations of objectively assessed occupational activities with musculoskeletal symptoms in office workers. Workers who accumulated longer sitting bouts reported fewer upper extremity symptoms. Total activity duration was not significantly associated with musculoskeletal symptoms. We underline the importance of considering total volumes and patterns of activity time in musculoskeletal research.     

Pruritus: Is there a grain of salty truth?

Hemodialysis patients characteristically suffer from a range of unpleasant symptoms. Uremic pruritus effects close to half of the chronic kidney disease population, reducing quality of life and associated with increased mortality. Its pathophysiology though is poorly understood; currently deployed therapeutic approaches are ineffective. Excessive levels of skin and soft tissue sodium accumulate in dialysis patients, producing a range of biological consequences, including inflammation. We report an index case of a hemodialysis patient with debilitating pruritus and extreme levels of tissue sodium, measured with Sodium-23 magnetic resonance imaging. Both the tissue sodium loading and pruritus responded fully to initiation of expanded hemodialysis therapy with a recently introduced medium cutoff dialysis membrane-based dialyzer.     

Insights about mental health aspects at intralogistics workplaces – A field study

The present field study investigated mental health aspects at intralogistics workplaces, as cognitive and social demands have largely changed in this branch. Within a cross-sectional, mixed methods study design, forty-one intralogistics employees completed a survey about their working conditions and mental states. Further, nine workers participated in a systematic, qualitative group interview to obtain intralogistics specific job resources and job demands. The results were compared to known mechanisms from a long-established psychological model (the Job-Demands and Resources model, JD-R model) to evaluate if these general assumptions still apply at modern working conditions. As expected and in line with the JD-R model, regression analyzes supported that job resources predicted work engagement (p < .05) and job demands predicted burnout symptoms (p < .001) even at modern intralogistics workplaces. However, no interaction effects (Job Demands X Job Resources) were found. The qualitative interviews highlighted several job demands and job resources, which were reported as especially relevant for modern intralogistics workplaces by the participants. Based on the findings, practical recommendations were evolved for the improvement of mental health at intralogistics workplaces. Job resources, for example process transparency or respectful and esteeming leadership behavior, can be increased in order to improve work engagement. Job demands, for example task interruptions, excessive time pressure or profuse exposure to physical stress should be controlled to reduce burnout symptoms.     

Indoor air quality and occupant satisfaction in five mechanically and four naturally ventilated open-plan office buildings

Occupant responses and indoor environment characteristics were recorded and compared in five mechanically and four naturally ventilated open-plan office buildings by using a simple approach that enabled us to survey many buildings simultaneously. All occupant responses were obtained during one afternoon. In a pre-experiment, temperature and the concentration of CO₂ were monitored in 2–10 locations/office to evaluate the variation throughout the offices. A representative measurement point was subsequently selected and measurements of the same parameters were made during one week. All offices were monitored during the same week and occupant responses to the indoor environment were collected via the internet on the same day within that week. The temperature and the CO₂ concentration varied more and were in some cases higher in the naturally ventilated buildings, but occupant responses in terms of symptoms and adverse perceptions differed only modestly between the two building types. Although rarely supported by statistical significance, the results indicated a somewhat higher degree of satisfaction with the indoor environment and a lower prevalence/intensity of symptoms among the occupants in the naturally ventilated buildings.